TY - JOUR T1 - Maternal Death Surveillance and Response: Looking Backward, Going Forward JF - Global Health: Science and Practice JO - GLOB HEALTH SCI PRACT DO - 10.9745/GHSP-D-23-00099 VL - 11 IS - 2 SP - e2300099 AU - Matthews Mathai Y1 - 2023/04/28 UR - http://www.ghspjournal.org/content/11/2/e2300099.abstract N2 - See related article by Tura et al.Understanding why a woman died during or immediately after pregnancy and childbirth is a crucial first step toward preventing other women from dying in the same way. Besides understanding the medical cause of death, it is also important to know the woman’s personal story and the other nonmedical factors that may have contributed to her death.In 2012, the World Health Organization (WHO) and partners launched maternal death surveillance and response (MDSR) as an approach to end preventable maternal mortality. MDSR follows a continuous cycle of notification, review, analysis, and response. Many low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) moved quickly to adopt MDSR in their national policies and practices.1 By 2016, 85% of LMICs reportedly had a national policy to review all maternal deaths. However, only 46% of LMICs reportedly had national maternal death review committees that met at least biannually, thus highlighting the need for countries to follow through on their policy commitments and “complete the loop” in the surveillance-response cycle.2Ethiopia introduced national MDSR in 2013. It was among the first sub-Saharan countries to capture maternal deaths at the facility and community levels. The decision … ER -